Come Back to Me
by mor17gan
Summary: After Brando and Sylvie's wedding, Zoe professed her love for Wade. Wade walked out without saying anything but after thinking about it, wanted to make amends to Zoe. Unfortunately for him, someone else had other ideas.
1. Chapter 1

The wedding of Brando and Sylvie is over with and Wade and Lavon are sitting in Lavon's kitchen having one last beer (supposedly) and rehashing the events of the night. "What are you going to do about Big Z, Wade?" Lavon asks. "She poured her heart out to you and you just walked out!" "What is wrong with you?" Wade just rolls his eyes "I don't know what came over me…I just couldn't think after she said that. I've waited so long to hear her say that and when she finally did….." Wade just put in head down on the table and didn't know how to finish the sentence. "I guess I'll stop by her place on my way home and see if she's ok and hopefully we can talk…..that is, if she's not too pissed at me". Lavon just shook his head and said "Good luck with that". You humiliated her, so it may take a lot of begging on your part to make things somewhat right again".

With that, Wade gets up to leave and heads out the door and over to Zoe's. When he gets there he finds that she isn't even home yet. "Hmm, wonder where she went off to. Maybe she stayed with AB to try and cool down". Guess I'll just head home and try again in the morning".

The sun came up bright and early, shining right on Wade's face, waking him slowly. "Oh, man…is it morning already? I feel like I've just gone to sleep". "Guess I'll head over to Lavon's and get some coffee, then off to see Zoe. Wade walked into the kitchen at Lavon's and poured himself a cup of coffee and topped off Lavon's cup. "Well, I guess this is it…time for me to face the music", Wade said. "Glad to see that you're trying to do the right thing by her" Lavon remarked. "Just don't get right in her face like you usually do!". With that, Wade's phone beeps, letting him know he's just received a text message. He gets a huge smile on his face as the name appears as "Doc". "Maybe this will be easier than I thought" Wade said at loud.

He flips open the phone only to find a picture of Zoe. She's got a black eye, and dried blood on her face and tears are running down her cheeks. The text reads "She has to realize that she can't love you. She was meant to be with me and until she realizes that, you will not see her except for what I send to you. It will not be pretty…this is only the beginning". Wade's eyes got huge and he went completely pale and let out a beastial "Noooooooooooooooooooooo". Lavon jumped up and grabbed the phone to see what he was looking at and said "Oh my God, Wade. What are we going to do!"


	2. The Wheels Start to Turn

This is my first FanFic, so please bear with me if I ramble!

Disclaimer: I do not , nor have I ever, owned Heart of Dixie.

"Lavon, what the hell are we going to do? I'll kill the son of a bitch that took her and also by the looks of it, beat her!".

"Not if I get to them first" yells Lavon. "I can't believe that someone could do that to a little bitty person like Zoe. Do you have any idea whatsoever about who would possibly have done this? I know I don't have a clue."

With that Wade's phone rings. He doesn't recognize the number but he knew in his heart who was calling him. "Hello, Wade. Having a good day? Ha ha ha ha I know Zoe isn't having such a great one. She still refuses to believe that she doesn't love you! She cries your name constantly hoping that you're coming to get her. She definitely has a stubborn streak in her, but I WILL break her, believe me. We were meant to be together and we WILL be, whether she likes it or not. I wouldn't bring the cops in on this or tell anyone else other than the mayor since I know you've probably told him already. If I find out that you did, she'll have to deal with more pain than she already has. Do you want that on your conscience? Don't bother tracing the call since it's a disposable cell phone and it's gone once I hang up."

Wade had never been so raging mad as he was as this particular moment. "You bastard, don't you dare touch her again or you'll never even live to regret it. I don't know what your game is here or how you managed to get her, but you're going to pay big time."

"We'll just see about that"…and the phone went dead.

Of course Lavon knew who Wade was talking to and asked him "Do you have ANY idea who it might have been? Recognize the voice? Hear Zoe in the background?'

"Whoa, slow down Lavon". I couldn't recognize the voice since he was using one of those voice thingys that disguise voices. I couldn't hear Zoe, but I'm sure she was there somewhere. He threatened to hurt her more if we tell anyone about this. I just wish I had some friggin' clue who might have her. I don't even know where to begin to look for her. We're going to have to tell someone else because we're going to need some help. We'll just have to figure out some way to do it without raising suspicion."

They both just sat there staring into space trying desperately to come up with ideas how to help Zoe. Finally Lavon spoke up "I think we need to call a secret meeting with only certain people that we know have nothing to do with this. We need to think this through rationally to pick the people that we'll need to help us with this. We can't use Bill since he's the only cop in town. That would probably cause us problems right off the bat. Tom and Wanda are out….they're too stressed as it is. "

Wade jumped in "Why don't we try and figure out who we should tell … it might go a little faster"

After much thought they came up with the following list of people that they both knew and trusted: Jesse, George, Lemon, AB, and Brick. Lavon then left the house supposedly to perform his 'mayoral' duties but instead found each of the people on the list and told them that there was an emergency meeting in an hour at the old Kinsella house in the woods. Since the only people that would have any knowledge of the house would be people that have lived in Bluebell forever, they felt comfortable that it would be OK for the meeting. They were all asked to come alone and not to mention it to anyone.

Lavon went back to the house only to find Wade in tears. He knew that there would be no way that he could comfort his best friend, so he just back out quietly and left Wade with some privacy.


	3. The Meeting

"You know he's never going to stop looking for me", Zoe cried.

"But he walked away from you when you told him you loved him….why in the world would you think he'd come and save you? You're not as smart as I thought you were! He's probably celebrating what he did to you by sleeping with someone else…how does that grab you? He's nothing but trash, how can I make you see that?"

Zoe yelled "There is NOTHING that you could do that would ever make me stop loving him, so why don't you just try and forget it and let me go! I will never love anyone like I love Wade and if I never get him back, so be it, at least he knows how I feel. I certainly won't love you like you seem to think I will. I don't give a damn what you do for me. I can't stand the thought of you putting your slimy hands on me and having to touch you….I'd rather die!" You're so repulsive that you have to disguise yourself so I don't have to look at you!"

With that, Zoe earned another slap to the other side of her face. "I will never let you go, Zoe Hart. But, I will make a video tape for you as your goodbye to Kinsella. That way he can look at it every night and see what he let slip through his hands. I'll give you a little time to think of what you're going to say then it's movie time! Ha ha ha I would love to see his face when he gets this".

As he walks away, there is something about him that suddenly is familiar to Zoe. She's glad that he's left the room so that she has time to think about it. Where have I seen that walk before….please please please let me remember.

Back at the old Kinsella house, Wade and Lavon were waiting for the others to arrive. Not quite sure how they were going to handle this, they were just tossing ideas around. "I don't think she was kidnapped", Wade said. "There was never any mention of a ransom or anything like that. I think the bastard just took her for himself and has no intention of ever returning her!". Lavon put his big hand on Wade's shoulder…"Please try and keep calm, Wade. I know this is so hard for you, but it isn't your fault. This sicko probably had this planned for some time now, just the opportunity came up and he took advantage of it. You know Z is a strong woman and won't give in so easily." "Good point, Lavon" Wade said. "She's probably chattering non-stop like she does when she's nervous!". Lavon just cracked a tiny smile…."True, and when she's like that, the only one that knows how to stop her is you!".

With that Brick walked through the door and right away wanted to know what was going on. "What's so important that I had to leave the practice for a while?" "You know I hate doing that".

Lemon came in next all in a huff. "What's going on? "Hi, Daddy. What are you doing here?"

AB and George were next and got there almost at the same time. Both just walked in and didn't say anything, just taking in the people that were already there, both noticing Wade's red eyes.

Wade stood up and just said "Thank you all for coming. Sorry it was hush-hush, but I have terrible news and I need help from all of you". Zoe has been taken by some lunatic and….with that, he was once again unable to speak. Lavon got up and took over for him. Lavon explained "Seems as if someone has it in their head that Zoe no longer loves Wade, but loves him instead". Lemon interrupted "Sounds like another Zoe Hart drama. How do we know that she just isn't doing this to get back at Wade?" With a smug look, she sat down, pretty proud of herself that she came up with that reasoning. With that, Wade saw red! He walked over to Lemon and handed her his phone to show her the picture of Zoe with the black eye. "Take a look at this before you go and make more bitchy remarks!"

Lemon gasped and showed the others the photo. "Wade, I'm so sorry", she said. How can we help you with this? Lavon stepped in, "We're not really sure yet. The bastard has already called Wade, but he has no demands. We assuming that he just wants to keep Zoe for himself. We need to find him before he hurts her anymore".

Wade piped in.."Lemon, you have the most evil mind of anyone that I know and we need you to help us make some kind of plan", "Brick, we need you for WHEN we find Zoe for any medical attention that she might need". "OK", Brick said, "but make sure that I get a shot at him when we get him!" "AB you're probably the most level-headed out of all of us, so we need you to keep us focused", "and George, we've been good friends since we were kids, and I need that stability right now". With that, Wade walked out the door. Lavon just told the group "Just give him a minute, this is really tearing him apart. As usual, Wade is blaming himself for this and just the thought of Zoe being hurt by someone is more than he can handle at this point. When Wade comes back in, we'll explain the conversation to you and see what you can take from it. Hopefully the dickhead will call us back and we get something from there". With a big sigh, Lavon just stood there with his head down. AB walks over and puts her arms around him just to give him some kind of comfort, knowing how much he also loves Zoe.


	4. The Video

Once Wade composed himself, he came back into the room with the others. "OK, does anyone have any idea how to proceed with this?" I think that we need to figure out how all this happened and then take it from there".

Brick chimed right in. "I think that whoever took her is someone that she knew. Since it happened after the wedding, Zoe was probably walking home alone and whoever it was stopped and asked her if she needed a ride. I don't see Zoe as someone to would just go with anyone if she didn't know them. After all, she's from New York…not the most trusting people if you ask me". Lemon jumped in "Well, I don't think it's anyone from Bluebell….things like that just don't happen around here!". Wade glared at her , "Lemon, you saw the picture…it DID happen around here so get that idea right out of your head!". George said "Maybe it was Joel. He was at the wedding and she did give him the boot after being together for so long". Lavon just shook his head, "No, I don't think it would be him. He has a new girlfriend already, so he didn't let any grass grow under his feet. We don't even know if it's someone she previously went out with. Could be just a freak that saw her and decided that he wanted her, but when he heard her tell Wade that she loved him, he must have flipped out or something". Wade just said "All good ideas, except Lemon of course, but they're not getting us anywhere. I don't even recall her talking to that many people and believe me, I keep my eye on her all the time." AB just looked at him and said "Don't worry, Wade. We'll figure this out. You know Zoe…she's not a quitter and she did tell you that she would never give up on you. I think that's really appropriate now. She knows that you're going to try and get her back". "Thanks, AB. I needed to hear that." Wade said softly.

"OK, Zoe. Are you ready to make your big goodbye video to loverboy Kinsella? Afer this, you won't ever talk to him again, so make it good." Unbeknownst to him, after much thinking Zoe pieced things together and was sure she knew who had her. Now, she just had to figure out how to get the message through to Wade. "You're a sick bastard. How could you do this to him? He has never done anything to you before!" "Ah, but he has. Just taking your love away from me is plenty of reasons to hate him. You deserve so much more", and with that he strokes Zoe's hair. "Get your hands off of me!" She shouted. "Don't you DARE ever touch me again and you will not live to regret it.". "OK, Zoe. I'll wait for you to come around. In the meantime, I'm going to bind you to this chair so that you don't try any funny stuff when you're talking to him". "Just for good measure and effect"…he turned around and backhanded Zoe. "Now sit there like a good girl until I get the camera ready".

Ready! Zoe, look right into the camera and make this your greatest performance. Action!

Zoe looked right into the camera and spoke her short message to Wade. It broke her heart knowing just how much it would affect him. When she was finished, she burst out crying uncontrollably. "Oh, how touching" he said. Your 'cowboy' should just love having to say goodbye to a video! With that..he once again dialed up Wade's phone.

Wade just stared at his phone as it started to ring. He knew it couldn't be good news He answered the phone "Kinsella". "Well, well, Wade. Are you ready for your video of your 'late' girlfriend? After today, you will never hear from her again and she will be all mine to love. She will come to love me in time and there's not a damn thing you can do about it!" Wade was getting frustrated because the voice was so disguised that he couldn't figure out who it was no matter how hard he tried. All of a sudden, a video starts up and there's Zoe. "Damn it! He hit her again!"…..

"Umm, hi Wade. Don't worry too much about me. I'm OK for now, babe. I'm told that this is the last time that I'll ever get to talk to you". Tears were rolling down her cheeks as she spoke. I just wanted to make sure that you're aware of just how much I love you. My whole world revolves around you and my life has no meaning without you in it. How I'm going to survive without you goes way beyond my thinking capacity. I have just a few regrets, other than never seeing you again. I'm so sorry that we never got the big home with all the animals that you wanted. We talked about it so many times, but we just let life get in our way. Remember how I used to tease you about being gay!" Zoe chuckled under her breath know how this would bother him! I couldn't resist getting you all riled up. But, you won't have to put up with me doing that to you anymore. As for me, I'm not even sure whether or not I'll be a doctor. I really don't know what his plans are for me. Wade, I love you more than life itself and don't you ever forget it. You will forever be my cowboy."

The screen went blank and there wasn't a dry eye between them. How could this be happening to someone that they both know and love? They all started talking at once and when Lavon turned to say something to Wade he saw a big smile on Wade's face. Thinking that Wade was about to lose it, he said "What in the hell are you smiling at? Have you lost your mind?" Everyone turned to look at him and all Wade said was…. "I know who it is".


	5. The Revelation

"Well, you gonna spill the beans or what?" Lavon asked. With that, Jesse walked into the room. "Nice of you to show up, Bro", Wade said. "When I said it was an emergency, I wasn't kidding around".

"I'm really sorry", Jesse said. "Shula Whittaker got a flat tire, so I changed it for her, but of course she made me some sweet tea as payment". George and Brick brought Jesse up to date about what was going on and then showed him the video. Jesse was pretty shocked to say the least, but when he found out that his brother figured out who it was, he as flabbergasted. "How did you get anything out of that video other than the fact that Zoe really loves you?" Jesse asked.

"Well, first off, we all KNOW that I'm not gay and Zoe never really teased me about it. However, I did tease her about one of her dates being gay, which of course she was never really too happy with me about that! Secondly, we never talked about having a lot of animals! I didn't even want to get a dog when we first talked about it. That was a hint about him being around animals And lastly….for Zoe to think that she might not be a doctor….never happen. No matter what happens, Zoe will ALWAYS be doctor". Nobody would have ever gotten Zoe's clues besides me since they're personal between the two of us. But she did a great job is telling me who the bastard is without giving anything away…...it's Judson!

Lavon grinned from ear to ear "Oh, Big Z…..you never cease to amaze me.". All the other were in shock. They all thought Judson was such a nice guy when Zoe was going out with him. Wade just said "I always told Zoe that there was something off about him. He wanted so bad to have a relationship with Zoe, but Zoe kept talking about me all the time and I guess it rubbed him the wrong way"

"Great job, Wade. But now how do we go about finding him", Jesse asked?

"I'm thinkin night maneuvers" suggested Lemon.

"I like the way you think" said George. This of course got Lemon flustered and for the first time of the day, everyone got a chuckle. Things were starting to fall into place. Now they just had to hope that Judson has Zoe at his home.

Judson looked at Zoe and said "How does it feel to be without Wade now?" "Don't be too upset, in time I'll make you forget all about him. We can get married and move away from here if you want to. I'll go anywhere you want. I can't believe you're finally all mine!"

Zoe just looked at him in disgust. Don't you think it's time to lose the disguise JUDSON? Yeah, I know it's you. I could tell by your walk. Nice trick with the contact lenses too. Change of color always makes a big difference. BUT I STILL DON'T WANT YOU!" Zoe yelled.

Judson started getting angry and walked towards Zoe "Enough talk for now. I'm going to let you take a nap for a little while since it's been a very busy day. He took a needle out of his jacket and jabbed Zoe with it, instantly rendering her unconscious. He lifted her up and took her over to the table where he proceeded to tie her to it so that she wouldn't escape when she came to. Then he leaned over the kissed her.


	6. It All Starts to Come Together

"OK, how are we going to proceed?" Jesse asked. Lavon said "I think the best thing we can do right at the moment is to go home and change and do anything that we need to get done and meet back here in 45 minutes. Wade can go and get some food and we'll eat when he gets back. Then we can decide how we're going to handle this. Make sense to everyone?" The all agreed and left Lavon, Jesse and Wade there. Lavon said that he had some mayoral duties that he had to take care of, so Wade and Jesse left to go the Rammer Jammer to pick up burgers and fries for everyone. While they were waiting, Wade happened to look out the window to see Judson walking down the street. He jumped up and starting heading for the door. Jesse looked to see what was going on and immediately caught on to what Wade was going to do. He flew after Wade and grabbed his arm stopping him from going out the door.

"Whoa, man. Where do you think you're going?" Jesse asked. Wade yelled "That bastard is out there and I'm going after him". Jesse just shook his head and said "Not a good idea if we plan on finding Zoe. Just sit down and wait for the food. I'll tail him and make sure that he goes home. I'll call George and give him an update so we know where we're headed later on". Wade conceded and sat down on one of the bar stools. "I guess you're right. I just hate the sight of that son of a bitch and want to tear him from limb to limb, but that won't help Zoe at all". With that, Jesse took off after Judson. Since he didn't know Jesse, it would make it a little easier to tail him. The food finally came out and Wade took it back to the house to wait for the others. Once everyone was back, they sat and ate their food, with the exception of Wade to just took off to go outside.

"I've never seen him so sad", said Lemon. It's hard to believe that THE Wade Kinsella is so in love with one person. I never thought I'd see that day come. AB just said "It works both ways, she is so in love with him also. They can't seem to function normally unless they're together. It's as if they complete each other." They all sat in silence until Wade came back in. He was now raring to go.

George, have you heard from Jesse?" Brick asked. "Yes, he said that Judson went back to his house, however there is also a huge barn on the property. That may be where he's keeping her. Jesse is going to watch to see if he makes any suspicious trips to the barn and will let us know if he does."

Wade stepped up and spoke to everyone "Before we go ahead and do this, I just want to thank all of you for helping me out with this. I don't know what I would have done without all of you. Brick, do you have your medical bad in case we need it for Zoe?" "Yes, I do" he said. "One other thing to think about, Wade. As a doctor, we're trained to compartmentalize. Zoe is one of the best that I've ever seen in doing that. She's probably able to deal with this better than any of us are at the moment. I just wanted to bring that to your attention and maybe it will help you a little bit".

"Thanks, Brick. I appreciate it". "Is everyone about ready to take off? The sun is going down and it should be dark soon. I think we need to take 2 separate vehicles and we'll split up once we get there. We'll need people at the front and back of the house and also at the barn. I guess we'll wait until we get there to see how to best handle it. Please nobody do anything really stupid and end up getting hurt." They all nodded in agreement and headed out the door with the stuff that they would need to take with them.

Wade was the last one out and just stared into the horizon…"Hang on, baby. I'm on my way".


	7. Together Again

Finally we're on the way to get Zoe, thought Wade. Please let her be ok….

Judson walked over to Zoe to see if she was awake yet. He was getting impatient since wanted to talk to her. However, he didn't realize that Zoe was just playing possum and pretending to still be knocked out. No way in hell was she going to give in to him. She knew deep in her heart that Wade would be there, either alone or with Lavon. Just let Judson stay stupid and think she belongs to him. He walked over to Zoe, who is still laying on the table, and begins to poke her.."C'mon Zoe, we have so much to do. Time for us to begin our life together and we need to get this house ready to sell. I think we'll move somewhere far away and start all over again. Won't that be fun? Zoe had all she could do not to scream at him, but she knew that once he knew she was away, there are no way that she would be able to avoid him. Judson just said "OK, I'll be back shortly, then we'll have dinner and begin our life together!" I told you that once Wade knew you didn't love him, he would just disappear. With that, he turned and walked out of the room.

Jesse was still watching the house, but Judson still didn't make an appearance. It looks like that barn isn't where Zoe is after all. Now we just have to figure out where in the house she is. He figured he'd get a jump on things and try peeking in the windows. Very carefully he snuck up to the house. Thankfully it was dark by this time, so at least he had some kind of cover. The first window he looked in had Judson sitting at the kitchen table. It look like he was going through Zoe's purse. All of a sudden he got an enraged look on this face and starting tearing up a piece of paper. Jesse could only assume that it was probably a picture of Wade. "Way to go, Wade. You can piss him off without even being here". He had to laugh at that one. He didn't get any farther since he received a text from George that they were almost there and to meet them down the road. So, off he took to report at least what little he knew.

The two cars pulled up next to each other, well out of view of the house. Everyone piled out and immediately went over to Jesse. "Well, what did you find out", asked Wade. Everyone looked on nervously waiting to hear what he had to say. "I didn't see Judson every go out to the barn, so I think we can figure she isn't in there. He's been hanging out in the kitchen, but he has Zoe's purse and is really pissed about something." Jesse said. Wade had to laugh "I would think it probably the picture of the two of us…probably set him off!".

"How are we going to get into the house", asked Brick. "It might be best if we have some kind of diversion to distract him".

"Good idea, Brick", said Lavon. "Any ideas?"

"I have an idea", said Wade. "There's only one of us that can pull it off though". He turned and looked directly at AB. "Me? She squeaked. "Are you really sure about that?"

"Well, with what I have in mind…none of the guys can do it, and Lemon is too volatile to do it. I need you to go up to his door and knock. When he answers, just tell him that you have a sick cat and could he please take a look at it. You need to act like you're really upset. I don't think he can resist a female in trouble. Once he comes out the door, we can get him then and afterwards we can find Zoe.". "Hopefully he'll think with his dick and not his head and fall for the plan".

The group looked at each other and decided that it was worth a shot. Since they didn't have any weapons, the had to rely on their wits to win this battle. "OK", said AB. I'll do it.

After they were all in safe hiding places, AB took a deep breath and walked up to the door. She knocked a couple of times and when Judson finally answered the door, she managed to squeeze out a few tears. "Hi Judson. Remember me? I'm AnnaBeth Nass. My cat is really sick and I fear for her life. Could you take a quick look at her and let me know if you think it's serious? She's in my car out on the road" Judson looked around and didn't see anyone so he told her he would, but he couldn't spend a lot of time on it. "Thank you so much, I would feel so much better", she said. With that..Judson took a couple of steps outside the door behind AB.

All of a sudden it sounded like there was an earthquake! Judson looked up and saw Lavon on a beeline directly at him, followed by Jesse, George and Lemon. Judson took off running towards the woods, but he must have forgotten all about 'Lavon Hayes, linebacker'! Lavon ran as fast as his legs would take him and when he got close enough nearly flew at Judson and tackled him in a tackle that anyone in the NFL would be proud of! "Nobody runs from Lavon Hayes and gets away", said Lavon. With that said, he threw a punch right into Judson's stomach causing him to yell out. "Where is she" asked George after everyone had caught up with them. "Where is who?" asked Judson. "Don't play stupid, you bastard" said Lemon with a well-placed kick where no guy wants to get kicked! "Where is Zoe Hart?" she said. "I don't know what you're talking about", he said. That answer earned him twin punches from both Jesse and George. "Did that refresh your memory", asked Jesse? With that, Judson started to cry. "I just wanted her to love me".

Meanwhile, when Lavon and company ran after Judson, Wade, AB and Brick veered off into the house. Running from room to room with no luck, they finally ventured into the basement, and there she was..tied to the table and not moving at all. Wade had never been so scared in his life. He walked over to her and touched her face lovingly. She still didn't move, so he bent over and kissed her. (reminiscent of Snow White!).

Zoe was still playing possum but when she felt those lips, she knew her cowboy had come to save her. She slowly opened her eyes to see him staring at Brick ready to ask him a question. He didn't realize that Zoe was looking at him. All of a sudden he heard "Can I have another one of those, Cowboy?" Wade thought he was dreaming! He turned his head and looked into the most beautiful brown eyes he had ever seen. "Hiya, Doc"…"what's new?" With that, they both started to laugh. Brick and AB rushed over and they were trying to undo the ties so that Zoe could move. Brick said "Zoe, please don't move around too much until I can check you over. It looks like superficial wounds and nothing that requires stitches or anything else. You were lucky. It looks like you're just going to walk about with a bunch of bruises and a black eye." Zoe sat up and Wade helped her off the table. Zoe had never moved so fast as she did to get into Wade's arms. He held her so tight and kissed her hair. "I am never going to let you go again, Doc. I love you so much and I can't believe how stupid I've been. If I had my choice, I'd marry you right now so that there was no question!". Zoe just smiled at him…"We can do that if you like, but I think we should wait until tomorrow". They just smiled at each other.

Brick said "I hate to break this up, but we need to get outside and see what is going on. The last thing I saw was a Lavon Hayes tackle with George, Jesse and Lemon right behind." "They all came to help me?" Zoe said. She felt the tears filling her eyes. Wade just said "Yes, they all came willingly, even Lemon. But, let's head outside and see what's up. There's something that I need to do.

They walked out the door to see Judson surrounded by the 4 of them. They all got their shots in so he knew they meant business, but now they were just taunting him….making him worry about what was coming next. Lemon said to Judson "OK, fun is over now….here's come Wade". Judson tried his best to get away, but the others were having none of that. Wade walked over to Judson and looked him in the eyes and said "You lose", and then hauled off and gave him the biggest shot that he ever gave anyone in his life. Brick came up behind Wade and gave Judson such a punch that it nearly knocked him out! "Wow", said Brick. I didn't know I could hit that hard. That felt so good!". Then AB runs up and pulls Judson's hair. Everybody just looked at her. Lemon said "AB, is that ALL you got?". She said "yup, that's about as violent as I get", and everyone looked at her smiling.

When Zoe managed to catch up to the rest of them, she walked over to Wade and put her arms around him. He said "Zo, is there anything that you want to do to him while you have the chance said 'No, but I do want to do this"…she latched onto Wade's lips and got as close as she possible could as he wrapped his arms around her.

Looking at Judson she said "When you go to sleep at night, just remember how my lips look attached to Wade. That's there's they're going to be every chance that I get!"

Wade just smirked and said "Damn straight, Doc". "AND, by the way, you can also think about me and Zoe being married and her having my kids". Judson just looked at him and said "I'll be back Kinsella, don't think you've won her. She will still be mine one day".

That being said, Lavon called the Sheriff and they just bullied Judson around until he got there, with the exception of Wade and Zoe who somehow or other managed to sneak off somewhere.

Finis

Thank you for the reviews and hope those who read this enjoyed it. Since it was my first story, I wasn't sure how it would fly.


	8. Off to the Hospital

**I was planning on ending the story with the last chapter, but several people asked me to continue it, so I'll add a few more chapters. Thank you all for your kind reviews and I'm glad you're enjoying the story.**

The ordeal with Judson was finally coming to an end. The police were there and carting him away. As he was leaving he kept staring a Zoe with a look that screamed "You know you love me". Zoe just shivered and moved even closer to Wade if that was even possible. Fortunately for Judson, Wade missed him looking at Zoe or he quite possibly would have gone after him, ending up in jail himself!

"C'mon everyone, lets get out of here. I've seen enough of this place for a lifetime" said Wade. "Lets just all get cleaned up and meet at the Rammer Jammer. I owe you all at least a drink".

"Sounds good to me", said Lavon. He was quite a mess from his open-air tackle on Judson, so he was looking forward to changing he clothes. AB was just looking down towards the ground.."yes, I need to go home first also. I do believe that I stepped in some kind of poo! Ewww" Everyone chuckled at that. They all decided to meet up shortly with the exception of Brick.

"Wade, I think we need to take Zoe to the hospital to get checked out, just in case…". said Brick. "In case of what? You think there's something else wrong with her?" said Wade, starting to go into a panic. "Calm down, boy, it's just a precaution".

Zoe remained quiet through the exchange but finally spoke up "I don't want to go to the hospital, there's nothing wrong with me". She was starting to get agitated and looked like she was ready to bolt. "Doc, there is nothing to worry about. We just want to make sure you're OK. I'm a little concerned with the bruises to your face, and want to get them checked out" Wade said quietly. Zoe just looked at him "Well, Brick said I was OK, so there is no reason for me to have to go!" yelled Zoe. "C'mon Doc, it was Brick's idea to take you there in the first place. Just humor me and go along with it", said Wade. "OK, but I'm not going to be happy about it", cried Zoe.

Everyone left except for Zoe, Wade and Brick. They climbed into the one remaining vehicle and took off for the hospital. They knew that once they got there they would get in and out pretty quickly since both Brick and Zoe were affiliated with the hospital and were bound to get 'special' treatment. When they arrived, the three of them walked into the emergency room, Wade's arm tightly around Zoe, and asked to be seen. Brick explained briefly what was going on and soon a doctor came out for Zoe. Brick went up to the doctor and took him aside and conferred with him briefly, then the doctor and Zoe left for the examination room.

Brick and Wade settled into the chairs in the waiting room and Wade turned to Brick and asked "Brick what aren't you telling me? It seems odd that we had to bring Zoe here for bruises and a black eye". Brick just look at him with sad eyes and then chose his words carefully.."Son, I have a hunch that Zoe was sexually attacked, but I need to have it verified." "How can you say that! "Wade jumped up out of the chair and started pacing. "Zoe said that nothing else happened!".

Thankfully they were the only ones in the waiting room so Brick didn't have to follow him around. "No, Wade, she didn't say that nothing else happened. Whenever you ask if anything else happened she says "Not that I can think of", not "No, nothing else happened". I think she might suspect, which is why she was putting up a fuss about coming here".

"How can she be unsure! She was there!", cried Wade. "True" said Brick, but don't forget, he also knocked her out with something. She was not aware of anything going on, but if it did, she might not have even known about it. I just need to be sure for Zoe's sake. " Wade pondered this for a minute then just shook his head "OK, I guess that would be the right thing to do". He calmed down a bit and finally sat back in the chair, both of them waiting for news from the doctor.

They just sat in silence until finally they saw the doctor walking towards them.


	9. And the Verdict is

Wade and Brick sat and watched the doctor walking towards them. Unfortunately they couldn't get a read off of his facial expression, so they just had to wait.

"I'm sorry", the doctor said. "Dr. Hart was definitely sexually abused. Luckily for her, she was unconscious at the time and doesn't remember any of it. We're still not sure what exactly it was that he used on her to knock her out, but whatever it was seems to have really done the trick. We're going to release her in your custody, Mr. Kinsella. Please keep an eye on her. At the moment I think she's in shock over those findings, but she refuses to stay here. Good catch, by the way, Dr. Breeland. I know that's not the answer you were hoping for, but we can only be thankful it wasn't worse".

Brick said to Wade "You go in by her now and get her ready to take home. I'll wait out here for you".

Wade slowly walked towards the room where Zoe was, not sure what to say to her at this point. He went into the room and Zoe was just staring off into space, deep in her own little world. Wade walked up and put his arms around her and stood there for a little while until he felt Zoe come back to him. She just looked up at him and said "I'm sorry babe, I guess this is the end for us, huh?". "Doc, there is no end for us. I meant what I said earlier that I would marry you today if I could. That hasn't changed at all. I love you more than life itself and plan on keeping you with me forever", he said. With that, Zoe managed a slight smile, but it still didn't reach her eyes. "Thanks, Cowboy. I needed to hear that", and with that they walked out to meet Brick.

Brick was pleased to still see them being lovey-dovey, but he was still worried about what it would be like once they got home.

After the trip from the hospital, they dropped Brick off at his house and Wade said "Everyone is meeting at the Rammer Jammer. Do you want to go?" She said "I just want to go home and take a shower and get a change of clothes. We'll take it from there." They arrived at Zoe's house and Wade opened her door and walked her up the steps. "Please come in with me", pleaded Zoe. "I really don't want to be by myself". Wade told her "That's fine, I'll just quick run home and grab some clothes to bring over here. I'll get cleaned up after you're done".

Wade was back in record time. He walked into the house, but couldn't find Zoe. Then he heard the shower going. As he neared the bathroom door, he could hear Zoe crying. He didn't know what to do, after all, he couldn't just walk in on her. He knocked and softly called her name, but she didn't answer. After several more tries, he just opened the door and went in. There he found Zoe curled up in the corner of the shower crying her heart out. Not caring that he was fully dressed, he climbed in and wrapped her in his arms and let her cry. "Wade, how can you possibly want to be with me after all that's happened? I'm used goods now and nobody should want me!" she wept. He took her face in his hands and pressed a soft kiss to her lips. "Zoe, no matter what has happened, none of it was your fault. You need to get that idea right out of your head. I have no intention of leaving you!

With that being said, Zoe finally grinned at Wade. That seemed to have brought her out of the funk that she was in and made her realize that nothing would change their feelings for one another. She looked at Wade and said "Well, Cowboy. What are you waiting for? Get out of those wet clothes and join me! He didn't need to be told twice….lost the clothes and together they showered, basking in the warmth of each other.

Now that Zoe was feeling a little better about things, Wade asked "So, do you want to go and meet up with everyone, or are you too tired?" "I think it would be nice to catch up with them, after all I owe them thanks for coming to rescue me.". OK good. I need to check up on the place anyway. They pretty much had no clue where I'd gone all day, so I gotta make sure they didn't run into any problems."

That decided, they both got dressed and went out the door hand in hand to meet their friends.


	10. The Road to Reality

Wade and Zoe set off for the Rammer Jammer to meet up with their friends. Surprisingly, the shower with Wade seemed to have brought Zoe back to reality and now she was raring to go. When they got there, they walked in with Wade's arm firmly around her shoulders. This caused quite a stir in the place since nobody except their friends even knew they were back together again. Zoe quickly walked over to the table where everyone was and they were all surprised at how relaxed she looked. Lavon stood up and gave her a big hug "It's great to see you smiling, big Z." "Yeah, well anyone would be smiling after a shower with a naked Wade Kinsella!" she said. Everyone burst out laughing and Wade turned all kinds of pink. "Looks like Zoe Hart is back", said Lemon with a smile. "She's the only one that ever managed to get Wade to blush". With that, Wade just said "Well, looks like I better go and make my escape before she really tells too much!" He kissed Zoe on the head and walked back to the bar to check on how things were running and if there were any problems that he needed to address.

Dash saw him walk away and made a beeline to Zoe. "Dr. Hart, whatever happened to your face. Looks like you went a few rounds with someone." The table got really quiet but Zoe just said "Dash, you know me. I was trying to walk too fast on those stupid heels and I must have stepped on a rock or something and took a faceplant on the road. Really did a number, huh?" Dash just looked at her , not quite believing the story, but figured that was all he was going to hear about that for now. "Are we to assume that you and Wade are an item again? You looked pretty friendly coming in the door."

Wade notice Dash interrogating Zoe so he quickly went back to the table just in time to hear the last question. "Yes, Dash. The good Doc and I are together once again, and will always be, together". Zoe just beamed up at him and took his hand. Dash took that as his cue to leave and wandered back to his table trying to figure out how this would fit into his daily blog.

"By the way guys" said AB. "I seem to recall something being said about a wedding. Were you just blowing off steam or what? Should I be getting excited?" "Yes", piped in Lemon. "Do tell". Wade just looked at Zoe and said "I meant everything I said and I would marry Zoe today. But, I can't speak for her." Zoe just grinned and said "I think we can manage that! But we should probably wait a couple of weeks at least." Cheers went up around the table and the rest of the place was curious about what they were celebrating. "it's about time", said Lavon. "Somebody finally tamed the Wildman" said Jesse. "Never thought I'd see the day". Brick said "Well, I guess you'll be wanting more time off, so you better let me know the date as soon as you set it!"

Wade just sat down and pulled Zoe on his lap "We'll let you know as soon as we figure it out". They all sat around sipping their drinks and talking, but Zoe was extremely fidgety. Wade said "Zoe, you really need to stop wiggling around if you know what I mean"…the guys at the table just laughed. "What do you mean", asked Zoe. "ooooh, never mind, I know what're you're talking about now! The big behemoth has sprung to life!' she giggled. "Oh shit, now she's done it" he thought.

"Ummm, the 'big behemoth?" asked George, trying his best not to laugh. However, Brick, Lavon and Jesse weren't quite as composed. Zoe just said "Well, now you all know why all the girls love Wade!" and then they lost it. Jesse was laughing so hard he said "I'm gonna pee my pants if I don't stop laughing!", which only spurred them on more. Lemon and AB were a little oblivious for a while, but when they caught on they started laughing, even though it wasn't the ladylike thing to do. Wade just sat there shaking his head. 'Welcome, back Zoe".

Finally Wade said "I think it's time we head out. I have to work in the morning and it's getting late". They all agreed and after the last round, they all went their separate ways after much thanks from Zoe. "C'mon doc, let's hit the road". Together they walked out and heading towards the plantation. When they got there, Zoe asked "Are you going to spend the night here or are you going back to your place?" Wade just took her in his arms and said "I'm staying here. Whether or not we even do anything, I just want to hold you in my arms and wake up with you there. I missed that so much". "Yeah, me too", she said. She turned and walked to the door and Wade mumbled "Yeah, the big behemoth will be glad too." Zoe just said "I heard that!"


	11. Life is good, sometimes

Things have been going great for Wade and Zoe for the past month or so. They got back into their regular routine, just as they had before….the routine being that they can't keep their hands off each other! This day had started out just like the rest with no reason to believe it would be any different.

Zoe woke up wrapped up tight in Wade's arms. He is such a cuddler, she thought. Who would have thought? She placed a kiss on his lips and he slowly started to stir. "Good morning, beautiful. How did you sleep?" he said. Zoe just smiled at him and said "Well, since you wear me out every night I sleep like a baby!" Zoe giggled and Wade blushed. "Sorry about that", he smirked. "No apology need on my behalf", she said. With that, she got out of bed and said "We both have to work this morning, so do you want to shower and head over to Lavon's for breakfast?" We haven't bugged him in a few days, so he's probably missing us". "Sounds like a plan to me", said Wade. "I could go for some scrambled eggs and bacon anyway, plus I need to talk to Lavon about something". "OK", said Zoe. Let's do it".

About half an hour later they walked into Lavon's kitchen to find him reading the papers and drinking his coffee. 'Morning strangers…haven't seen you in quite a while" he said. "Yeah well, we've been kind of busy", said Wade grinning. "No, no, no"..said Lavon. "I don't want to talk about what you do when I'm not around! You two are like rabbits." Wade and Zoe sat down and had their breakfast and Zoe got up to leave "Well, I have to get to work. I'll see you home later on". Wade gave her a big kiss and sent her on her way.

"Lavon, I need to talk to you about something", said Wade worriedly. "Sure, what's up" asked Lavon. "Well, I heard that Judson's case is coming up and Zoe hasn't said anything about it. Do you think she's going to push to get him charged with rape?" Lavon just looked at him "I don't think so. She would have done that by now if she was going to. She probably feels that she doesn't know what happened, so how could she actually go to trial about it?" "Yeah, that's true", Wade said. "I'm just afraid to talk to her about it". Lavon said "You two are in a really good place right now, so I think she'd be fine if you asked her. She seems like she's moved on for the most part…basically all because of your love and support". Wade just let thought sink in and said "I'll think about it. No need to push it, I guess. Anyway, I gotta head out to work. Catch you later." And off he went.

The day passed pretty slowly for Zoe. There wasn't much going on in the practice. She had a few patients with very minor injuries, but other than that she was pretty much just doing paperwork. It was just about time for her to get ready to leave and when she stood up, she was overcome with the feeling like she was going to throw up. She raced into the bath room and just made it in time. "Oh great", she thought. "I need a stomach virus like I need a hole in the head". She sat there for a while and when she felt a little better, stood up to start getting ready to head home and to Wade. As she was picking up her purse, she noticed the calendar on her desk. She always marked it with a big red X to show when it was 'that time of the month'. Well, looks like she missed it two weeks ago. Starting to panic, Zoe just paced back and forth trying to figure out if she just forgot to mark off the calendar. After this went on for a while she just said "The hell with it, I'll just grab a test and see what happens. There's no way that I'm pregnant anyway, but at least this will put that idea to rest". Zoe went into the bathroom and did the test then sat and waited for the results. When the five minutes were up, Zoe very carefully picked up the test to check the results…"OH MY GOD!", she yelled. "This can't be happening. How am I going to tell Wade about this? And worse yet…what if it's Judson's?" With that, Zoe totally broke down.


	12. Breaking the news

Zoe was in a panic, but inwardly she was also excited. "I can't believe it, a baby! I never thought I'd see that day". Things were so good with Wade these days so it was hard not to be happy. It was just that tiny thought in the background that there was a slight chance that it wouldn't be his. "I just have to think positively" she thought. She got rid of the pregnancy test and closed up shop for the day. She had to decide what she was going to tell Wade when they both had a chance to sit down and talk.

Zoe got home earlier than Wade did, so she took a walk over to the mansion, hoping to find Lavon there. Since he is her best friend, she needed to tell somebody and who other than Wade would be more perfect. "Hey big Z" said Lavon when she walked into the house. Lavon and AB were watching a ballgame on TV so she went and sat down with them. "Hey guys, what's going on?" AB just looked at her and said "Lavon has to leave shortly, so I was humoring him and let him watch baseball". With that, Lavon looked at his watch and said "Guess my time home is up. I have a meeting that I need to get to. AB, could you make sure the TV is off when you leave?" "Sure thing, she said".

Zoe asked AB "You guys still aren't back together, huh?" "No", she said, "I think we're just meant to be friends". "That's too bad", Zoe said. "I loved having you as a neighbor!". AB looked at Zoe and said "OK, what's up? You look like you have something on your mind. Is it something I can help you with?" Zoe sat for a minute and finally blurted out "I'm pregnant". AB jumped out of the chair and ran over to Zoe and hugged her. "That's great news! I am so happy for you. Wade is thrilled I assume?" Zoe just looked at her sadly "I haven't told him yet". "Well, why not? asked AB. "You can' t honestly think he won't be thrilled?"

Zoe's eyes filled up with tears. "What if it's Judson's?" Zoe knew that she never told AB that she was sexually assaulted, but she was sure that the word was around in their circle of friends. "Oh, Zoe" she said. You need to think good thoughts about this baby. Knowing how much Wade loves you, I think he'll love the baby no matter what. It's amazing to think how much he's changed, and all of it for you. Just give him a chance." Zoe looked at her and said "Yeah, I guess you're right. I'll tell him when he gets home from work". As if on cue, Zoe heard his car pull up in the driveway. "Well, I guess I better get home and break the news". "OK, said AB, "but don't spend too much time worrying about it. Give me a call later on and let me know how it went". On that note, Zoe left to go and give Wade the news.

"Hey, baby" Wade said when he saw her walking through the door. "I thought you'd be here when I got home". Zoe said "I stopped over to Lavon's for a little bit and was talking to AB". "Not a problem", said Wade. Anything I should know about…like how good looking I am?" he laughed. Zoe just smiled and shook her heard. "Nah, that's a given". "But, yes. I do have to talk to you about something. I'm not sure how you're going to take it, but please hear me out". Wade looked at her nervously. "Doc, you're making me nervous now. Just spit it out".

"Here goes.. Wade, I'm pregnant". Zoe thought his eyes were going to bug right out of his head they got so big. "You're what? Did I hear you correctly? We're having a baby?" Zoe just nodded and all of a sudden, he ran over to her, picked her up and spun her around. "I can't believe it! You have just made me the happiest man alive!" He set Zoe down and looked right in her eyes. "But?" he said. She just looked back at him and the tears fell. "Wade what if it's not yours?" He took a deep breath, knowing who she meant and walked right up to her. "Zo, regardless of whether this baby is biologically mine or not, I will love him or her with all my heart because it's a part of you. There's a good chance that it is mine anyway since all we've been doing is making love for the past month every chance we got! So you get that worry right out of your head. We're going to be parents, baby! Looks like we might have to push the wedding date up!" With that said, Zoe just laughed and said "What did I ever do to deserve you? "You wore those short shorts and high heels!" Wade laughed. You turned me into mush and I'm afraid that I'm losing my man card! "Never gonna happen, Kinsella. You're way too hot for that!" They both put their arms around each other and walked into the kitchen to make dinner. Looks like it was going to be an interesting night in the Hart/Kinsella household.


	13. Sharing the news

After celebrating the night away in their typical Wade/Zoe fashion, they awoke the next morning and just stared at each other. "I still can't believe it" said Wade. He rubbed her belly and she just laughed. "You won't feel anything for a while yet". "I know" said Wade, but I'm just practicing!". On that note, they both got up and Zoe went to make the coffee. "Do you think you're ready to spill the beans to Lavon?" Wade asked. Zoe just nodded her head. "Yup. AB already knows but she wouldn't tell anyone. I would like him to know and also Earl before we tell anyone else." "What about your mother?" Wade asked. "I'll tell her in due time. No rush..she doesn't make much of an effort to talk to me anyway". They sat having their coffee until they felt like heading over to Lavon's.

They walked into the house and saw Lavon on the telephone, probably doing one of his many mayoral duties. He just waved them over to sit and have breakfast. All of a sudden Zoe jumped up and ran to the bathroom. Looks like morning sickness took over as she threw up. Wade came in to see if she was ok, figuring out what happened. She just look at him and said "It was the sausage!". He helped her clean up and they both walked out to the kitchen again. This time Lavon was sitting there and just stared at them. "Is everything OK, big Z?" "You pretty much bolted out of here". Zoe just looked at him and said "I'm more than fine, Lavon". She took Wade's hand and said "We're pregnant". Lavon almost spit out his coffee.."You're WHAT?" Is this a good thing? he asked cautiously. "It is a very good thing" said Wade. We're very excited about it. We just wanted you to know before we told the rest of the town". "Well, thanks for that" Lavon said. "but it's really not surprising seeing how the two of you are…like I said before….rabbits!" Wade and Zoe just laughed. We're having open mic night tonight at the Jammer, so maybe we'll spill the beans there. We want to talk to Earl first. I don't go in to work until tonight, so we'll stop over this this afternoon some time." "That OK with you doc?" "Sounds like a plan" she said. They sat around for a while talking about nothing in particular until Wade and Zoe got up to leave.

"I have some stuff to do at the Jammer to get ready for tonight, but I"ll be back in a couple of hours. You'll be OK?" Zoe said "You need to stop worrying about me. I'm fine. I think I'll wander into town and see if I can find AB or Lemon. Maybe they'll want to get manicures or something". 'OK", Wade said. When I get back, we'll go and see Earl and give him the good news. I can't wait to see his reaction, especially since he's not drinking anymore!". "It's a date",she said. He kissed Zoe goodbye and took off in the car. Zoe went into the house to get ready to go out, but instead, she lay down for a minute and was sound asleep before she knew what happened.

When Wade returned home, he found Zoe sound asleep with one of his shirts in her arms. He had to laugh. She's always done that since they were first together. For some reason or other, she needs to smell him in order to go to sleep. No clue what was up with that, but he was flattered. She even did that when they were broke up and he was with Vivian. But he knew he had to wake her up, so he walked over to the bed and sat down. He leaned over and gave her a kiss, which of course woke her right up. "Hey", he said. "Looks like you didn't get much done while I was gone" he laughed. "I don't know what happened", she said. "I walked in and all of a sudden I was exhausted. I was only going to rest for a few minutes." "That's OK", he said. "Now that you're pregnant, I'm sure it will happen more often than not. Are you ready to go and talk to Earl?" he asked. "Oh definitely", said Zoe. Let me get ready and we'll head out".

They pulled up to Earl's house and got out of the car. When they were walking towards the house, they could hear Earl out in the backyard mowing, so they walked around back. He saw them and turned off the mower. "Hi you two. What brings you out here?" "Wade said "Pop, we need to talk to you about something, but we wanted to do it in person". "Guess I'm going to be a grandpa, huh?" he smiled. "How did you know" Zoe asked. The only other ones that know is AB and Lavon". "Easy enough to figure out with you two. You're like rabbits," "Dammit" said Wade. "What's with all the rabbits comments!". Zoe just laughed, "guess everyone knows we spend more time in bed than anyplace!". Earl just smiled "Congratulations to both of you AND me". "I never thought I'd see the day that my boy would settle down and raise a family. You ARE going to get married, right?" "Yes", said Zoe. We just need to iron out the details. I would like it to happen before the baby is born though". "Damn straight", said Wade. "I can't wait for that day to come." Earl walked over and gave both of them a hug. "I love you both. If there's every anything I can do, just let me know".

They talked a while longer then Wade and Zoe left to head home to make dinner. They had a big night coming up and had to decide how they were going to break the news to everyone else. All things considered, Zoe was handling this pretty well. Every now and then she got a worried look in her eye, but then all she had to do was look at how happy Wade was and it made everything better.


	14. Spreading the News

After they had dinner, Wade headed off to the Rammer Jammer to finish the preparations for the open mic night. Zoe was just going to hang around at home and go in with Lavon a little bit later. She was a little bit excited about spreading the news about the baby to the town. Thankfully they never did find out about the attack so the only ones that knew were the ones that were involved. She reflected on that night for a little while and tried to put it at the back of her mind. It was hard to believe how good Wade has been under the circumstances, but he seemed genuinely happy about the baby. It was so cute how he rubs her tummy every time he gets a chance. "Just think positively, Zoe", she said. She puttered around the house a bit and sat out on the porch waiting for the time that Lavon would be there. After a while he pulled up "Ready to go, big Z?" he asked. She just nodded happily and climbed into the SUV with him and off they went.

"This is going to be quite the night" Lavon said. "Have you decided how to tell everyone yet?" "No, not really", Zoe said. I'll just leave that up to Wade, he's more the showman than I am". "True dat" said Lavon. "I think most of our group will be there tonight so it should be a good time". "Yeah", chimed in Zoe. "Seems like forever since we've all been together". They pulled into the parking lot and found a spot near the door. Lavon didn't want Zoe to have to walk too far. Both him and Wade were going to be the over-zealous protectors during this pregnancy. Zoe had to laugh "Lavon, I am capable of walking you know". Lavon just looked at her and said "I have to take care of my godson or goddaughter. Don't want them to think that I wasn't earning my title". Zoe just smiled at him. They walked in and found the table where their friends were already sitting. Zoe looked for Wade and saw him at the bar surrounded by females, all trying to get him to notice them. She trusted him explicitly, so she wasn't too concerned. She decided to walk up and see how things were going and heard them all making a big fuss over him. "Oh, c'mon, one of them said…why don't you just take off your shirt and make things a little more informal? The others all nodded in agreement, still laying the compliments on pretty thickly. He just turned them all down as nicely as he could without being offensive. After all, it was his bar and the business was always appreciated. He turned and saw Zoe walking up and immediately a huge smile broke out on his face. When she got there, he leaned over and gave her a big kiss. "All your fans are here, I see", Zoe smirked. "Yup", he said "and they're very persistent! They want me to take off my shirt!" She just laughed…"can't say as I blame them." With that she walked back to the table with her bottled water. Lemon said "Is that all you're going to drink, Zoe? This is supposed to be a fun night!" Zoe just looked at her and said "I'm just starting out slow, maybe later". George just stared at her "You feeling OK? That's not the Zoe way!". She just looked at him and made a face.

After a little while, the place was filled to the rafters. Everyone loved open mic night. They got to see all the local talent and also some of the not so talented. But it was all in fun, so nobody ever got booed. Wade stepped up to the microphone to get the show started. After going through all the usual explanations of where the exits were, etc. he said "And now, I have an announcement that I'd like to share with all of you. As most of you know, Zoe Hart and I are now back together again, which in itself is a great thing. Zoe's the best thing that ever happened to me in my life and I don't know what I'd ever do without her. But, enough of that mushy stuff. Zoe, could you come up here for just a minute? I know you hate it up here, but I need you for a sec. " Zoe walked up to Wade and he put his arm around her. 'It is with extreme great pleasure that we would like to let all of you know….Zoe and I are pregnant!"

With that the room just went crazy. Everyone was clapping and whistling. Wade pulled Zoe into his arms and gave her a toe-tingling kiss which caused even more whistling. Zoe just looked at him and mouthed "I love you" and went back to her friends. Lavon was the first of course to hug her, even though he already knew. Everyone else followed suit with hugs and kisses. Lemon and AB said  
"We have some major shopping to do now!" Lemon was so excited. She and Zoe have become pretty close since the ordeal and they enjoyed doing things together. Jesse lifted her up and spun her around. "I'm so happy for you guys. You finally got it right after all these years".

Wade's fan club at the bar just glared at her. Wade walked up to them and said "Sorry, but I'm VERY taken", and walked to help some of his other customers. The open mic night was a huge success as they often are. One of the major stars is always George. He has a great voice and is a real showman. There were a lot of local acts and a bunch of out of towners, but everyone got a huge round of applause and went home happy for the night.


	15. Reality sets in

Wade and Zoe got home after a very long night. There were a lot of congratulations and well wishes, except for all the females that wanted a shot with Wade! The were both exhausted when they got home, but did manage a few minutes of conversation before Zoe totally crashed. "Well, that went well' said Wade. "I didn't know so many people would be that excited about it.". Zoe just laughed "I think it's more because Bad Boy Kinsella is finally off the market and their daughters are safe!" Wade just looked at her and shook his head. He said 'You really should try and get some sleep. You have a doctor appointment tomorrow with Brick, so I don't want you falling asleep on the table." "You're coming with me, right? It's the first sonogram and I don't want you to miss it" said Zoe. "I wouldn't miss it for the world" said Wade. They got ready for bed and before you knew it, they were sound asleep.

The time finally came when Zoe's appointment arrived. Both Zoe and Wade were nervous when Brick came out to meet them. "Hi, you two, you ready for this?" Brick asked. They both just nodded and stood up. Brick said 'Zoe, I don't know why you're so nervous, you've seen this done hundreds of times. Nothing to it". "I know", said Zoe, "but it's never been done on me".

"Thanks for asking me to be your doctor, I'm really honored", said Brick. "I wasn't sure if you'd be comfortable or not, so I was happy when you asked me. "I wouldn't want anyone else", said Zoe. "I know you would do what's right for me and you've know Wade all his life. The choice was a no-brainer".

"Hope up onto the table and lay back. I'll be back in a second with the machine", Brick said. Zoe looked at Wade who looked totally nervous. "Nothing to worry about, cowboy. It won't hurt and we'll get to see the baby" Zoe said. Brick came in and asked her to pull up her shirt to expose her belly. He said "you're starting to show already…and then squirt the gel for the sonogram onto her belly". He took the paddles and started slowly moving them across her belly and all of a sudden the heartbeat came across loud and clear. "What's that noise", asked Wade. "Is something wrong". Zoe just looked at him with tears in her eyes.."that's baby Kinsella's heartbeat." Wade looked totally amazed. Then Brick found the baby and pointed it out to them. "There's the baby" he said. Wade and Zoe both stared at the screen. She grabbed his hand and they just sat and stared. It suddenly became so real for them.

Brick gave them a few minutes then came back into the room. "Everything looks fine", he said. "We won't know the sex for a while yet, but you can decide at that time if you want to know what it is or not." Zoe cleaned off her belly and Wade helped her off the table. When they left the practice he picked her up and gave her a huge kiss. "that was amazing!" he said. "Thanks for letting me come with you."

"Wade" she asked. "What's up? You OK?" he said. "Yes", Zoe said. "Do you think maybe later on today we can talk about the wedding plans. Things will be moving along quickly now and I really would like to be married sooner rather than later", she asked. "Yes!" he whooped. " I was waiting for you to bring it up. I'm happy to do whatever you want as long as I can make you my wife. Did you have a date in mind"? he asked. She said "I was thinking in about 3 weeks. We should be able to pull off something small in that time. What do you think?" Wade just smiled and said "You have a date!" We'll starting working on it later on.

Both Zoe and Wade had work that day, so they both left for their respective jobs, happy with the way that the day was starting for both of them. Once they got home, they would talk about the wedding and how they wanted it done.

Wade brought home take-out from the Rammer Jammer so that Zoe didn't have to cook. While they were eating, they were kicking around wedding plans. "I would really love it if we could get married at the plantation", said Zoe. "Lavon has such a huge yard and plenty of space. Do you think he'd let us do that?" asked Zoe. "I'm sure he would", said Wade. "He loves having big parties in his yard. We'll ask him tonight and see what he says". "I think I'll have AB as my maid of honor and Lemon and Rose as the attendants", said Zoe. "That means that you need 3 guys." "I think I'll have Lavon as my best man of course, and Jesse and George as the ushers". "That works", she said. "Now I have kind of a strange question for you." "What's that, babe", he asked. "Well, since the wedding is only 3 weeks away, I know that Ethan won't make it, and my mother is in France so she may or may not be here. What would you think if I asked Earl to walk me down the aisle?" Wade just stared at her. "Do you have any idea how happy that would make him? He's loved you I think even longer than I have! Earl is the only person that has had complete faith in you and me right from the beginning. You are the most amazing person I know, Zoe Hart soon to be Kinsella!"


	16. Wedding Plans

The next morning the couple stopped over to Lavon's house. He was making breakfast and invited them to stay. (He has since stopped making sausage since it made Zoe so sick). They decided to sit and have pancakes and juice. While they were eating, Zoe said to Lavon "Hey Lavon, old pal"..he just looked at her and raised his eyebrows. "What would you think if we got married here in 3 weeks?" He continued to look at her then jumped up and did the happy dance! Wade and Zoe couldn't stop laughing. Wade just said "I take it that it's a yes?" Lavon stopped dancing around and said "I would be honored to do that for you". What were you planning? Zoe said "I was thinking that since the whole town has seen all of our ups and downs through the years and they're such a big part of our life, that they would all be invited. I'd love to make it like a town picnic with everyone bringing a covered dish or two. We would supply the drinks, and the dessert, and appetizers. Wade could find someone for the music." "What do you think?" Lavon thought it was an amazing idea. The town would be so excited to be part of their big day. "I could call a town meeting for later on today and let everyone know. I'll have them let you know if they can make it or not so we can at least get a number". "That would be great", said Wade. Since neither one of us is religious, there really is no sense in us getting married in a church. Would be kind of phony if you ask me". After they finished up their breakfast, they were going to head over to Earl's before they went to work.

When they arrived, Earl was in workshed pounding away at something. "Hey pops", said Wade. "What are you making?" Earl stood up and said "I'm making a crib for my grandbaby!".. Zoe gave him a hug and said "that's really terrific, thanks". "To what do I owe the pleasure so early in the morning", said Earl. "I thought I was the only early bird in the family." Zoe looked at him and said "I have a question that I need to ask you". Earl looked at her confused and said "OK, shoot". Zoe started "We've decided to get married in three weeks. But, chances are that neither one of my parents will be here. I was wondering if you would do me the honor of walking me down the aisle?" Earl just stared at her as his eyes welled up. "I would be so honored to do that for you. I love you like a daughter already. You've gotten me to stop drinking and always had faith in me. Because of you, I can now walk around town with my head held high and not worry that people are talking about me. Thank for you for asking me, Zoe". He gave her a big hug and moved on over to his son "I'm really proud of you son. You make sure you're good to her or you have me to answer to!" Wade just said "You don't have to worry about that. I have no intention of doing anything to hurt the doc". They sat around for a few more minutes then it was time to leave.

Zoe went to find AB and Lemon to talk a little while before she had to get to the practice. Wade went to the Rammer Jammer and waited for George and Jesse to show up to give them the news about the wedding. In the meantime, Lavon called his town meeting for early evening and told everyone that they needed to be there. "Should be interesting", he thought.

Later on in the evening, it was finally town meeting time. Everyone was curious about what Lavon had to say. Wade and Zoe showed up and sat in the back row. As all the seats were filled and some were standing, Lavon started his meeting. 'Thank you all for coming. This meeting is about good news, so nothing to get all riled up about. In three weeks, Zoe and Wade have finally decided to tie the knot. The wedding is going to be held at my home and they would like to invite the entire town to the wedding. Also, they would like it to be like a town celebration, with everyone bringing a covered dish and they would supply beverages, appetizers and dessert." Everyone jumped up and starting cheering. "I take it that you're all interested?" he asked. There was no doubt whatsoever that everyone was interested. 'All I ask is that you please let Wade or Zoe know if you can make it so that they can get a count". "Thanks, and meeting is adjourned".


	17. Wedding Eve

It was the day before the wedding and the whole town was like a beehive. There was so much activity going on it would make your head spin. Wade and Zoe were taking a breather and sitting in the gazebo just watching everything going on. "It's amazing that the whole town in helping us out", said Zoe. "I think they're more excited than we are!". "I wouldn't say that, doc" said Wade. "I can't wait until tomorrow gets here and I see you walking down the aisle to me." "Aww", said Zoe. "You're such a softie. What happened to the bad boy Kinsella act?" "That started to fade away when I first met you. You've managed to get rid of it totally now. I'm 100% yours now". "Well, not exactly now", said Zoe. "but tomorrow you will be!" she said happily. With that, George saw them sitting there and walked over to them. "I hate to bust the bubble of happiness that is going on here, but I have some news that I need to tell you." Wade and Zoe just looked at him, knowing that Judson had his court case this morning. "What happened" asked Zoe quietly. George said "Well, it's not all bad, so don't worry. He's going away for quite a while, so you don't have to worry about him. But he did mention the fact about the sexual attack and how he hoped that you were pregnant, forever tying you to him. I don't think he knows that you're pregnant, but just wishful thinking". Zoe started to tear up "Now everyone will know that the baby might not be yours" she said sadly to Wade. Since George wasn't aware of that fact initially he just looked at both of them "I know in my heart that this baby is both of yours. Please don't let this ruin your big day tomorrow. I really had to let you know what was going on". Wade looked at him "Thanks, man. I know you're only doing what you have to do. We appreciate your representing Zoe so that she didn't have to go to the hearing and the fact that we don't have to worry about him anymore. We both know that regardless what happens with the baby, he or she will have so much love that it's never going to be a problem". Zoe just sat quietly and didn't say anything. George took off and Wade said "Zo, are you OK?". She just looked at him tearfully "Wade, is this really going to work? Will we really love the baby as much as he or she deserves?" "No question about it", said Wade. "I'm already head over heels for baby Kinsella and nothing will change that". Zoe finally managed a smile as they got up to leave.

Wade wanted to stop over to the Jammer and see how things were going. He had taken a week off, but he still had to check in from time to time to make sure there wasn't something that he needed to do. When they walked in the place was bustling. People jammed in for lunch and were comparing notes on what they were bringing to the wedding tomorrow to make sure that they didn't just have a table full of potato salad. Funny, but Shulah Whittaker was taking the lead on the food service. She always loved Zoe's kindness to her and her cats so she wanted to pay it forward so to speak. She had a list as long as your arm of all the different foods that were being prepared. Zoe had to giggle when she saw her holding court. She definitely had things well under control.

The garden club in town was preparing flower arrangements to take out to Lavon's house. This was the responsibility of the three lovely ladies that sat in the middle of town gossiping. Zoe just loved them to death. She remembered how shocked they used to be when she walked around town in her shorts. They always thought she would be a troublemaker, but instead, she tamed the troublemaker! They all loved Wade since they watched him grow up. Yes, he was a troublemaker and never at a loss for women, but when Zoe came to town, all that slowly disappeared. Now the gossipy women had to find someone new to talk about!

Lemon and AB secretly met with most of the town and asked that instead of the traditional wedding gifts, that they get baby gifts instead. Wade and Zoe had been on their own for so long that they really didn't need much of anything for the household. However, baby stuff is a whole different ballgame. Neither was quite sure what they would need, so this would help tremendously. The townspeople were excited about that. It would be kind of like a baby shower/wedding all in one day.

Wade and Zoe finally were able to venture over to Lavon to see how things were going there. They were laughing so hard when they saw Lavon. He was like the energizer bunny, running all over the place making sure everything was just perfect. He finally spotted them and ran over. "I can't believe how smoothly everything is running", said Lavon. "Of course it wouldn't be if I didn't watch them every second! Wade just laughed and Zoe said 'Lavon, take a break and lets go in the house for something to drink". They went into the kitchen and sat for a while. Zoe has her sweet tea and Wade and Lavon each had a beer. Are you sure you don't want a rehearsal dinner Zoe? Asked Lavon. "Nah", she said. This is so informal that we can just go over things before the wedding. No need to make a bigger fuss that we are now. "OK", he said. " But if you guys want to come over for dinner, I'll have the rest of the wedding party over and we'll just barbecue and relax before the big day". "That sounds great", said Wade. I could use a little relaxation after the hectic week we've had. The told Lavon about George's visit to them earlier and he was pleased that they wouldn't have to worry about Judson again. "That's great, big Z, now you get your life back". She just smiled at him.

Later on that day Wade and Zoe, George, Rose, Lemon, AB, Lavon, Jesse and Earl met for an impromptu barbecue and just sat around talking until it started getting dark. Everyone decided to head home so that they could get plenty of sleep for tomorrow's big event.

Wade and Zoe walked home hand in hand. Wade took Zoe in his arms and said "Are you ready for this, babe?" She just looked at him and said "More than you can ever know, cowboy". They shared a lingering kiss before they went into the house for the night.


	18. The Wedding

The morning of the wedding dawned bright and sunny. A beautiful day to be sure for the wedding of the year in Bluebell. The entire town helped with the preparations of everything from the decorations right down to all the food, with Lavon as the orchestra leader. Lavon was up early to make sure that all the preparations were either under way or completed. His house looked beautiful. There were flower trellises to line the aisle and all the tables had vases filled with local flowers. Lavon wondered if there were any flowers left in town! The seats were all aligned perfectly and just waiting for occupants. For some strange reason, Wade asked that the piano be placed up near the altar where they were to be married. Obviously he has some agenda of his own going on that he didn't care to share with anyone else. Be interesting to see who would be playing that piano. Lavon was actually getting giddy!

He went back into the house and heard a knock at the front door. He went to answer and saw Earl standing there. "Morning, Earl. What brings you by so early this lovely morning?" Earl said "I can't believe how nervous I am and I just couldn't sit at home any longer. Is it OK if I hang out here and watch the goings-on until I'm needed?" "Be my guest", said Lavon. "I was just about the fix breakfast if you'd like some". Earl said "Well, maybe some coffee", but then proceeded to eat eggs, ham, home fries and pancakes!". Lavon said "I can see who Wade takes after" and chuckled.

Wade and Zoe also woke up early, but for a different reason than Lavon. Wade looked at Zoe and said "good morning my beautiful almost wife". She just looked into his eyes and starting kissing Wade. He said "Now, don't you go and start something that you can't finish. Isn't it bad luck or something?" Zoe just said "I have every intention of finishing. Time to unleash the Big Behemoth!" He just laughed at the nickname she gave him and just let her have her way with him.

Several hours later, they decided they better get out of bed and showered. They only had a few more hours until the wedding and needed to get a move on. When they were done showering and having their coffee Wade said "well, I better get over to Lavon's to see how things are going there. I can just picture him running all over the place barking out orders". Zoe laughed and said "Yup, seen that a lot lately". Wade kissed Zoe and said "until later". "Back at ya", she said.

Lemon, AB and Rose soon showed up at Zoe's door. "Are you ready for the big day?" asked Lemon? Rose was so excited she couldn't stop jumping around. AB came up to Zoe "How you doing? You feeling OK?" she asked. Zoe said that she felt wonderful and nothing could damper her good mood today. They were all happy to hear that and started going over the list of stuff that they needed to get done before the wedding. The hairdressers would be there shortly and once that was done, they could get dressed. Zoe was standing there and all of a sudden her eyes got really wide. 'Zoe, what's wrong?" asked Lemon. Zoe just smiled and said "I think baby Kinsella is happy about the wedding. They chose today to start moving around". "How exciting!" said AB. "Can we feel it?" Zoe had no problem sharing the baby movements with her friends. "Sure", she said. And they all took turns waiting for the baby to move around a bit.

Meanwhile all the guys were at Lavon's house already. Everything looked to be finished outside. The townspeople were stopping by most of the morning to drop off food for the festivities and to see how beautiful the yard looked. It was quite a spectacle. Wade said "I didn't think I'd ever see the day where there was a wedding being planned for me of all people. I can't believe how excited everyone is". Earl just looked at him "Son, all it took was the right woman to tame you. Zoe stepped into your life and there was no going back. You needed someone that would come right back at you when you're acting stupid!". Everyone laughed at that. Jesse said "I'm really proud of you, bro. You really straightened out your life..getting married and having a kid. I'm almost kind of jealous!". Wade just laughed. George and Lavon started reminiscing of the good old days when they were kids and before they knew it, it was time to get ready. They headed upstairs to get into their suits, which being guys, didn't take long at all. Wade went up to his father and gave him a big hug. "Pop, you look great. Thank you for doing this for Zoe. It really means a lot to her". He looked at Wade and said "I owe everything to that little girl. I'm thrilled to be able to be a part of today and it's all because of her". They all patted Earl on the back and finished up dressing. "Damn", said Jesse. "Zoe is gonna pass out when she sees you. She think you're hot when you're wearing flannel. I don't know what's gonna happen when she sees you in that suit." "I take it that I pass inspection?" said Wade. "Absolutely" said George and Lavon in unison. "Well, this is it", said Wade. Ready to head downstairs?"

They headed outdoors as all the guests were starting to arrive. Earl excused himself and headed over to Zoe's to see how they were doing. After all, he was the only that was responsible for getting the bride there!

Lemon, AB and Rose were all dressed and talking among themselves. Zoe had yet to make an appearance. She didn't want anyone to see her before she was ready and chose to get dressed on her own. Finally the door opened and out came Zoe. The 3 women didn't know what to say. She looked so beautiful that words just wouldn't be enough. "My God, Zoe. You look absolutely gorgeous" said Lemon. AB said "Wade's not even going to be able to talk once he sees you". Rose just smiled at her, at a loss for words. Zoe had on a very very pale pink strapless gown with a high waist to allow room for her ever growing belly. It was covered in lace and pearls and had a small train. She didn't want to go too extreme since after all she was already pregnant and didn't feel that white would be appropriate. She had flowers woven into to hair, which she chose to leave long since that's the way Wade loved it. "You sure I look OK?" she asked. Zoe's insecurities were starting to come out at the thought of being the center of attention. On that note, Earl walked into the room and said to Zoe "You look like a beautiful angel just put on earth for my son. I am honored to be your father-in law". He gave her a big hug and a kiss on the cheek. Zoe's eyes started to water and he said "No tears today, beautiful lady". You ready to head over to Lavon's now? It's time" Zoe just nodded, took a deep breath, and off they went.

Everyone had arrived for the wedding and it was time to start. "Finally", said Wade. "I didn't think it would ever get here". The men walked up to the front of the crowd and took their places. Reverend Mayfair looked at Wade and said "Ready to start"? Wade just said "Let's do it!". On that note, the 3 piece orchestra that Wade hired started playing softly. Rose was the first one down the aisle, trying very hard not to trip or do something embarrassing. The girls were all dressed in dark rose to complement the pale pink of Zoe's gown. Rose made it safe and sound and let out a big breath when she got there. Next came Lemon who was being the typical southern belle as she walked down the aisle, smiling at everyone in the crowd. AB followed and looked more nervous than anyone. She just didn't want anything to go wrong for Zoe's sake. All 3 of them were up in the front waiting for Zoe and Earl to make an appearance. Finally, the moment everyone was waiting for…Zoe. They have never seen someone so completely happy as Zoe was. She was holding on to Earl for dear life as he walked proudly beside her. Everyone was oohing and aahing at how beautiful she looked. Zoe wasn't really nervous once it started, but when she looked up to find Wade she didn't see him! She was going into a panic when all of a sudden the guys moved out of the way and there at the piano (that nobody knew why Wade wanted it), sat Wade, playing and singing Zoe's favorite song by John Legend….

_What would I do without your smart mouth  
Drawing me in, and you kicking me out  
Got my head spinning, no kidding, I can't pin you down  
What's going on in that beautiful mind  
I'm your magical mystery ride  
And I'm so dizzy, don't know what hit me, but I'll be alright_

My head's under water  
But I'm breathing fine  
You're crazy and I'm out of my mind

Cause all of me  
Loves all of you  
Love your curves and all your edges  
All your perfect imperfections  
Give your all to me  
I'll give my all to you  
You're my end and my beginning  
Even when I lose I'm winning  
'Cause I give you all of me  
And you give me all of you

Everyone was getting all teary eyed. Nobody even knew that Wade knew how to play the piano (except Jesse, of course). They were all used to hearing him sing his country music, but nobody ever suspected that he had such a beautiful voice. He was staring at Zoe as she walked down the aisle and when she was getting close, he stood up and waited for her. Earl gave Zoe a kiss on the cheek and placed her hand in Wade's. Zoe was speechless at this point. The song was so beautiful, and to have him sing it to her was beyond words. "You look so beaufiful", he said.

Reverend Mayfield started the service and said that Wade and Zoe both wanted to write something for the other. Wade chose to go first. "Zoe, I chose to sing that song to you because the words were so perfect of what you are to me. I thought my life was just fine until you stepped into it and showed me how much I was missing. We've had so many ups and downs yet we've managed to come through all of it stronger than ever. You complete my life and I want nothing more than to call you my wife and to have our children to share that love with". Zoe whispered to him "the baby moved today!" and he placed his hand over her tummy as everyone watched. Zoe, being from New York, wasn't the best whisperer around and most of the people heard her anyway! The baby picked that time to move and Wade felt the shift. He smiled so big and Zoe just said "He knows his daddy".

It was Zoe's turn for her to speak to Wade. "Wade, I never in a million years would have thought that you and I would ever end up getting married and having a baby. However, as time went on, I came to realize what a great man you really are. You have a heart as big the world and a smile that would make the Mona Lisa jealous. Not to mention a smokin' hot body! (everyone laughed at that). All kidding aside though. You are the one that completes my soul. You are my everything and there is nothing that could ever change that. I love you, Wade".

After a few more lines by Reverend Mayfield, the words everyone was waiting for him to say "I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride". With that, Wade leaned over and took Zoe in his arms and they shared their first kiss as man and wife. It was a typical Zoe and Wade kiss….R-rated!

They turned to their audience and everyone jumped up and applauded as they walked down the aisle. They have never looked so happy as they did then and when they got free of the crowd Wade looked at Zoe and said "Hi, Dr. Kinsella, my beautiful wife". She grinned from ear to ear. "I love the sound of that, Mr. Kinsella, my oh-so-hot husband" That being said, they were off to enjoy the festivities with all their friends and neighbors.


	19. Baby News

The wedding was over with and now time to celebrate. Zoe went back home for a few minutes just to change. It was kind of hard to have a good time wearing a wedding dress. Since the weather was so warm, she decided on a sundress to keep her cool. She walked back to Lavon's to find the party in full swing. The food tables were packed with both people and food. There was every kind of food imaginable. It was amazing what people would bring just to show off their culinary skills, not that she was complaining. She looked around trying to find Wade and saw him talking with Lavon. She walked over and put her arms around him, "Hi, hubby", she smiled up at him. He smiled back and said "I'll never get tired of hearing that!". He gave her a kiss and started to fill her in on what Lavon and he were talking about. "This is amazing news, Zo". Lavon wants to build on to the carriage house to add a few bedrooms, an extra bath and a larger kitchen. Seems as if he doesn't want us to go anywhere!". Lavon just looked at them and shook his head "As much as you two drive me crazy, I can't even imagine what it would be like around here without you guys. And since your family is already expanding, I thought this would be a good incentive to stay!" Zoe ran up to him and gave him a big hug "Lavon, how can we ever repay you for this?" "He just said "No payment necessary. I've wanted to do that for a long time anyway, so what better time than now?" Secretly Wade thought that was a bunch of bull, but went along with it. He also didn't want to leave. "We can discuss plans tomorrow, Wade, and see what needs to be done".

Wade and Zoe started walking around and talking with all their guests. Many of them were already dancing since Wade hired a band for the entertainment. He noticed Earl out there dancing with one of the women from town. "Gonna have to keep an eye on him", Wade thought. All the people were coming up to Wade and Zoe and offering their congratulations and saying what a good time they were having. They heard Lavon over the microphone asking for everyone's attention. He said "I would like to just say a few words". With that everyone chuckled, knowing how long-winded he could be. "First off, I would love to congratulate my two favorite people. I've seen them knocking heads for years, neither one of them would admit their feelings for each other. They've argued, yelled, screamed at each other, yet no matter what happened, they always found their way back to each other. They were always meant to be, and I'm glad they finally figured that out. I love both of you, or as is the case, all three of you". He raised his glass in a toast. Surprisingly, Brick wanted to get up and speak next. "I've known Wade since he was a little boy. He wasn't exactly a troublemaker, but he could certainly cause trouble and talk his way out of it! Even so, he's grown to be a fine young man and I have no doubt a terrific father. Now Zoe, that's a whole different ballgame". Everyone chuckled. "She breezed into town with her New York attitude and fancy clothes. I was terrified of her actually! But once we came to know her and her quirky ways, we all fell for her charms. She's the perfect counterpart to Wade. They're total opposites, except that they're both soooo stubborn, but they work. Congratulations my friends. Many years of happiness".

Zoe and Wade stood up before everyone and started to speak. "We just wanted to thank everyone for coming to celebrate with us", said Wade. "It's amazing how much we accomplished in so little time". I'm glad that Zoe decided that she wanted to have the whole town and do the party thing". Zoe chimed in "Yes, thank you all for all the hard work you've put into this wedding celebration for us. You all make me feel like a part of the town now, and I really appreciate it. But, We don't want to hold up your good time..please party on!"

Wade grabbed Zoe for a slow dance. They were barely moving but had their arms around each other and were more or less swaying to the music, content in their love for each other. "You up to going to see Brick with me tomorrow?" asked Zoe. "You bet", said Wade. I have to meet with Lavon to go over what we're going to do to the house, but my day is mostly free after that". "OK", she said. "I'll make an appointment for early afternoon then". All of a sudden, Wade started laughing. She looked up at him "whatever brought that on?" she said. "It looks like there's another badboy Kinsella in the making!". He pointed and there surrounded by women, was Earl, holding court. Zoe had to laugh. "He is just so cute!" she said.

After a few hours, things were winding down and everyone bid their farewells. Wade and Zoe left to start their lives together as a family. The celebration went WAY into the night after Wade realized that they could have sex without hurting the baby!

The next day, Zoe called Brick and set up the appointment with him. Wade went to meet Lavon and to help clean up the yard a bit. It only took a few hours to finalize what they were going to do with the house, so Wade was home earlier than expected. Zoe was resting but got up when he came home. "We have an hour or so until we have our appointment with Brick", she said. Do you want to get some lunch? "Sure", said Wade. We'll stop over at the Jammer and grab a burger or something and I can check on things while I'm there. They left shortly thereafter to eat.

When it as time for their appointment, they walked up to the practice. Zoe hadn't been working much lately due to the wedding plans, so she was glad to be back even if it was only for a visit. She and Brick decided that she would only work part-time while she was pregnant. Brick came out "Wade, I'm going to examine Zoe first to make sure everything is going well, then we'll call you in for the sonogram". "Sounds like a plan", said Wade. He picked up a magazine and started to flip through it. Shortly thereafter, Brick came out and said "OK, c'mon in. Everything looks good with the pregnancy. The baby is getting big.". He brought in the machine and told Zoe to pull up her shirt. He belly was really starting to be noticeable. They heard the heartbeat, which always got to them. They were holding hands and watching their baby move, both of them trying not to cry. Brick looked at them and said "Do you want to know the sex? I know what it is now". Wade looked at Zoe and said "What do you think, doc? Wanna know?" She nodded her head in agreement. Brick looked at both of them and started to laugh.. if you look right there and pointed, you will notice the baby behemoth bits!" and he broke out laughing at how much the nickname embarrassed Wade. "We're having a son?" asked Wade. "You most definitely are" Brick said. "Congratulations to both of you". Zoe just kissed Wade "looks like another cowboy in the making!"


	20. Arrival time

The wedding long behind them, both Wade and Zoe were at home today. They've finished most of the renovations to the house, but there were still things left to do. Wade decided that they should put up a fence in the yard for when the baby got bigger. They didn't want to risk the chance that he took off into the pond or worse yet, ran into Burt Reynolds! Zoe still wasn't over her fear of him and could only imagine what it would do to a baby. Since she was very close to her due date, Zoe decided to go out into the yard and sit in the sun for a while while Wade was working on the fence.

AB and Lemon picked that time to stop over to see how she was doing. "How's it going, Zoe", asked AB. "You getting bigger and bigger every day". "I feel like I'm about to burst", laughed Zoe. This tiny frame wasn't built for carrying big babies!" AB just laughed. Meanwhile Zoe and AB looked at Lemon and she was totally staring at Wade while he worked on the fence. They burst out laughing. Wade was painting without a shirt on, and his pants kept getting lower and lower as he painted, leaving not a lot to the imagination. Lemon was embarrassed that she got caught ogling him and said "I don't know how you ever get anything done with him parading around like that!". Wade walked over to them to say hi and Lemon said to him "How do you keep so in shape when you don't even go to a gym!? He just smiled and said "My wife makes sure I get all the exercise that I need" he said as he winked at Zoe. She turned bright red and everyone started laughing. "Guess he'll never change", said AB. "Nope, and I don't want him to!". Said Zoe.

Zoe got up and waddled back into the house to get drinks for everyone. "She definitely looks like she's ready to go", said Lemon. "She's huge!". AB just smiled and said "Yeah, not going to be long now until the most spoiled baby in Bluebell is born!"

After her friends left, she walked over to Wade "Do you want to go out for something to eat instead of staying here? I really don't have a lot of energy to cook something and you've been working all day at that fence". Wade said "Sure, babe. When I'm done here I'll get cleaned up and we can go. Probably another hour". Zoe was fine with that and went into the house to lay down for a bit. Before she knew it, Wade was done and came in to take a shower. "I'll be ready in about 15 minutes", he said. Zoe was pretty uncomfortable all of a sudden and stood up. She walked around a bit to try and calm the baby down. Seems as if he decided it was soccer time. When Wade came out, she was still pacing. "You sure you're OK to go out?" he asked. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just uncomfortable from all the kicking he's doing today". "OK, if you're sure. We can head out for a quick bite then and get you back home". They went out in the car (since Zoe was now to big to walk to the Jammer and much too slow), and off they went. They were surprised when the got there that so many people were eating dinner. Wade was very pleased with this. Business has been really good lately and he would like to see it stay that way. Zoe saw Earl and Jesse eating, so she went over to sit with them. Wade walked around to talk to everyone and said he'd be back in a few minutes.

"How ya doing, sweetie?" asked Earl. "You look like you're all out of sorts today". She just said "Nah, just an active kid today. He must be hungry". Wade came back with their burgers but then saw Lavon come in. He said to Zoe "Sorry, I'll be right back. I need to talk to Lavon quickly about the renovations". Zoe just said "That's ok, take your time. I'll eat slow". With that, he went over to meet Lavon.

All of a sudden, Zoe got a sharp pain in her belly which took her breath away. Earl noticed this and grabbed her hand. "You ok? You're not in labor, are you?" "I don't think so", she said. "Just a sharp kick". She relaxed a bit and then a few minutes later she had another one. This one caught her off guard and she let out a yelp. Even though Wade was across the room he could pick out that voice anywhere. I came running over to Zoe "Baby, you OK?" She just looked up at him and said "I think we better call Brick and head to the hospital". Wade got a panicked look on his face. He's been preparing for this for a while now, but when it came right down to it, he was scared to death!. Luckily, Brick was also in the Jammer so Jesse ran over to get him. "Zoe, what's going on?" he asked. She just said "I think baby K is ready to meet everyone". Brick said "I'll call the hospital and let them know we're on the way". Wade just help Zoe up and walked her out to the car. "Are you OK?" he kept asking her. "Wade, don't worry, I'm fine. "Hurts like hell, but I didn't expect anything less. Please let's just get there quick", and she doubled over again in pain. Zoe got in the car and Wade ran around to his side and got in and sped away towards the hospital.

Everyone in the Rammer Jammer saw what was going on and the word spread quickly that baby Kinsella would soon be here. Lavon, Lemon, AB, George, Jesse and Earl all went to the hospital to wait. They all knew that both Zoe and Wade were worried about the baby possibly being Judson's, so they wanted to make sure that they were ok. Even though Wade totally accepted the baby as his own, they all knew it was still in the back of both of their minds.

Many hours later, Zoe still wasn't ready to give birth. Brick discovered that the baby was upside down and that he would have to turn in order to make it out safely. They waited as long as they possible could then Brick finally said to Zoe "Zoe, for your sake and the baby's, I think we need to do a c-section now. The baby isn't turning on his own and it's getting to the point where it's dangerous for both of you.". Zoe looked at Wade and said "Sorry, Wade. I wanted to do this on my own, but it doesn't look like that's going to happen". He just kissed her and said "We need to do what's best for both of you". So they agreed to it. Wade went out to explain what was going on to everyone and headed back into the room. He now had to put on a surgical gown and mask while they got ready for the operation. Soon things were ready to roll. "It won't be long now", said Brick as he started the procedure. Wade was only allowed to stay in the background, but he was happy there. The sight of blood always made him weak in the knees. He didn't want to pass out and not see his son being born!". He was daydreaming when all of a sudden he heard a loud cry! He eyes watered immediately as Brick said "You have a perfect son, Wade. I'll have the nurses clean him up and bring him over to you when they're done".

Wade had a strange request for Brick however. "Brick, would it be OK if I didn't see him until Zoe wakes up? I want both of us to see him for the first time when we're together." It was a very odd request, but Brick knew what his reasoning was behind it. "I'll let the nurses know what to do", he said. In the meantime, I'll go out and talk to the others and let them know that he has arrived. What's his name, by the way?" Wade just smiled up at him "It's Lucas Earl Kinsella".

A few hours later, Zoe started to stir. Wade was right by her side and she said "How is he?" Wade said that he's fine. He weighed in at 8 lbs. 9 oz, which is a pretty good sized baby. Tentatively, Zoe asked "What does he look like?" Wade just said "I honestly don't know. I told Brick that I wanted to first see him with you. Seems only fair since you carried him for 9 months!". She knew that wasn't the real reason, but she wasn't going to call him on it". "OK then,", said Zoe. "Lets meet Lucas!" Wade went out to talk to the nurses and asked them to please bring him in, then went back to Zoe's side. The nurse came in carrying a bundle all wrapped in blue. She went over to Zoe and put the baby in her arms and Zoe just looked at Wade and burst into tears. The baby stared up at his parents and Zoe could swear that he was smirking at them. He has a full head of blond hair that stood up all over the place! He looked so much like Wade that it was kind of funny. He leaned over to Zoe "Well, Mommy, that answers the big question that's been plaguing us for months". He gave her a huge kiss. "Yes, Daddy, it certainly does. Lucas Earl Kinsella is definitely your son. He is the spitting image on you!". Never before had a couple been so relieved.

They invited their friends to welcome the new baby and that all let out a collective sign. Lavon said "Well that boy is definitely making a statement. Look at that hair! It's just like his dad's…sticking out all over the place!". Everyone laughed and Earl just came over to hold his new grandson.

This is the last chapter of the story. Thank you all for reading and helping me out with comments. Possibly a sequel in the works however.


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